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Haiti earthquake

earthquake in Haiti : Razed to the ground, the horrifying images.Pictures,pics, Photos of destruction that may have killed 100,000 people

* 16 Britons missing after quake rips island apart* Hillary Clinton: 'Biblical' damage is on par with the 2004 Asian tsunami* Haitian senator: Death toll could reach 500,000* New video of buildings collapsing during earthquake emerges* Red Cross runs out of medical supplies* World Bank pledges $100million to help recovery and reconstruction

The earthquake itself is over - but as these images show, the horror in Haiti is only just beginning.

Stunned Haitians began stacking bodies on the streets of their devastated capital Port-au-Prince. yesterday as distraught, dust-caked survivors clawed feverishly in the debris of shattered buildings.

Their prime minister said he feared the death toll from the huge earthquake could climb above 100,000 as the International Red Cross said up to three million people - almost a third of the population of one of the world's poorest countries - had been affected.

Among the missing were 16 Britons who had been living in Port-au-Prince.

Haitians set up impromtu tent cities thorough the capital after the earthquake

The worst is yet to come: Afraid to go back to their houses - if their houses are still standing - people camp out in a football field in Port-au-Prince last night

International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander said there were 32 British nationals living in the city - half of whom had yet to make contact with the UK's ambassador.

'There are no indications of British casualties,' he added.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton described the damage as 'Biblical', and likened the disaster to the 2004 Asian tsunami.

This is going to (be) one of the highest in terms of loss of life in recent years,' she said.

One leading politician, Senator Youri Latortue, suggested the toll could rise as high as 500,000.

The full horror of the disaster was only beginning to emerge today - with scenes of utter devastation in the densely-populated city.

Bodies pulled from collapsed homes were laid at the side of the road and covered with sheets, with passers-by lifting the covering to discover if loved ones were underneath.

Outside the remains of one shattered building in Port-au-Prince, the bodies of five children and three adults lay in a pile.

Traumatised Haitians spent last night sleeping in parks and streets, fearing aftershocks would claim more lives.

There was still no sign of organised operations to rescue those trapped in debris - or to remove bodies piled high on the streets.

Survivors feared returning to their precarious homes and slept in open areas were groups of women sang religious songs in the dark and prayed for the dead.

'They sing because they want God to do something. They want God to help them. We all do,' said Dermene Duma, who lost four relatives.

Residents tried to rescue people trapped under rubble, clawing at chunks of concrete with bare hands. Men with sledgehammers battered at slabs of debris in collapsed buildings searching for survivors.

One young man yelled at reporters in English: 'Too many people are dying. We need international help ... no emergency, no food, no phone, no water, no nothing.'

'It's the worst I've ever seen,' the Salvation Army's director of disaster services in Haiti, Bob Poff, told CNN. 'It's so much devastation in a concentrated area. It's going to take days, or weeks, to dig out.'

Bertin Meance, from HelpAge International, said: 'This is definitely the biggest disaster that Haiti has to face in more than 200 years.

'The situation is indescribable. A few images remain in my mind - thousands of people are homeless and will need temporary shelters.

'They are all gathered in public squares. Some are afraid to return to their homes. Some do not have homes to return to.

'There are reports of looting. Many people, including older people, are traumatised because this isthe first time that most living Haitians are experiencing an earthquake.

'The extent of losses of human lives is leaving many people traumatised.'

As well as tens of thousands of homes, hospitals and schools were also destroyed.

The UN have confirmed 14 of their workers have died and 100, including Hedi Annabi, the Secretary General's special envoy, are missing after their five-storey headquarters collapsed.

The devastation in the country is clear to see, as the American Red Cross revealed last night they have run out of medical supplies to help those injured in the natural disaster.

Spokesman Eric Porterfield said the small amount of medical equipment and medical supplies that were available in Haiti have already been distributed.

The organisation, which has already contributed an initial $1million from its International Response Fund, will be sending more supplies.

But Mr Porterfield said he had no idea when they would arrive.

The news comes as thousands of people worldwide have pledged to support the country in any way they can.

The World Bank said it planned to extend an $100million in emergency aid to Haiti to help recovery and reconstruction.

In a statement President Robert Zoellick, said: 'This is a shocking event and it is crucial that the international community supports the Haitian people at this critical time'

'The World Bank is mobilising significant financial assistance and sending a team to help assess damage and reconstruction needs. Our thoughts are with the people of Haiti, our staff, and our UN colleagues.'

Ruins: Many areas of Port-au-Prince were completely devastated while fire broke out in the city's cathedral after the quake struck

A shanty town on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince where thousands of dwellings were either completely destroyed or badly damaged

Around 200 people are also feared dead after a hotel crumbled to dust, the National Palace is in ruins and a major hospital was also destroyed.The main Citigroup Inc. three-storey office in Haiti also collapsed in the quake, and the company are now desperately trying to track down the 44 employees who were inside at the time.

'Our top priority is to ensure that our colleagues are safe and accounted for,' an internal memo from the bank read.

Helpless: A woman waits to be freed from rubble

while another survivor looks dazed as she walks through the streets of Port-au-Prince bleeding and covered in dust

A boy receives treatment at an ad hoc medical clinic at United Nations Stabilization Mission In Haiti's logistics base

Obama pledged swift, coordinated support to help save lives. The Pentagon was sending an aircraft carrier and three amphibious ships, including one that can carry up to 2,000 Marines.

The US, China and European states were sending reconnaissance and rescue teams, some with search dogs and heavy equipment, while other governments and aid groups offered tents, water purification units, food and telecoms teams

US airlines suspended commercial flights to Haiti. The quake knocked out the Port-au-Prince airport control tower. The US Air Force sent a team to restore air traffic control to allow flights to evacuate the injured and bring in supplies.

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, UN special envoy to Haiti, said more rescue teams and heavy equipment were needed.

'We need more helicopters,' Clinton told CNN. 'The most important thing is to get people into the (collapsed) buildings and find as many alive as possible.'

Tthe Haitian national palace shows heavy damage following the earthquake. The city's airport was operational, opening the way for international relief aid to be ferried in

An aerial view of the UN headquarters in Haiti shows how the office complex was devastated by the earthquake

The US Coast Guard evacuated four critically injured Americans helicopter to its naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The Coast Guard said Port-au-Prince port suffered massive damage and destruction, including its container crane.

Medical aid group Doctors Without Borders said its three hospitals in Haiti were too badly damaged to use and it was treating the injured at temporary shelters.

'What we are seeing is severe traumas, head wounds, crushed limbs, severe problems that cannot be dealt with with the level of medical care we currently have available,' said Paul McPhun, operations manager for the group's Canadian section.

People carry a body through the streets in Port-au-Prince yesterday

The victims: A group of people look silently at a pile of bodies lying on the street

BRITISH TEAM FLIES OUT AS GOVERNMENT PLEDGES $10m

British rescue teams landed in the Dominican Republic today, the neighbouring country to Haiti where tens of thousands of people were thought to have been killed in a devastating earthquake.

A four-man team from the UK Government and 71 rescue specialists with dogs and heavy equipment arrived shortly after 7am and will travel to Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, later today, the Department for International Development said.

The British government has already pledged $10million in aid.

International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander said the UK experts were 'desperately needed'.

'This is a tragedy on a massive scale. Already Britain is playing its part in the huge international response.'

Emergency aid: US soldiers unload gear as they arrive at Port-au-Prince's airport, in Haiti

Backup: A rescue team from China line up to before heading out to Haiti

Mr Alexander will meet British aid agencies this morning to launch a Disasters Emergency Committee appeal for victims of the quake.

He said: '(Haiti) is a desperately difficult country. About half the population lives on less than a dollar a day, and the scenes we witnessed yesterday would challenge even the strongest of governments.

'My ambassador told me there was a very strange atmosphere in the city today. Many people are not willing to go back into buildings. So there are not just bodies in the streets but people are actually living on the streets at the moment.'

Mr Alexander said it is essential that the immediate rescue operation is followed up by a comparable recovery effort.

'The most basic needs - the need for shelter, the need for water, the need for medicine and the need for food - are going to emerge, we sense, on an immense scale in the hours, days and weeks ahead,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

The British rescue team was due to arrive in Port-au-Prince at around 11am GMT (6am local time), leader Mike Thomas said.

'We are hoping to hit the ground running and really make a difference, to try to rescue as many people as possible,' he told Sky News.

Mr Thomas, speaking from Santa Domingo airport in the Dominican Republic, said the rescue team was expecting 'widespread devastation' but added that many of those heading for Haiti had experience of similar disaster zones.

'It helps to know people in the UK are supporting us,' he said.

Rubble: This GeoEye-1 satellite image of Port-au-Prince taken from 423 miles up in space shows the central part of the city yesterday morning